Clinton wins popular vote by nearly 2.9 million

Lisa Lerer, Associated Press

WASHINGTON — Hillary Clinton received nearly 2.9 million more votes than President-elect Donald Trump, giving her the largest popular vote margin of any losing presidential candidate.

Certified results in all 50 states and the District of Columbia show Clinton winning nearly 65,844,610 million votes — 48 percent to Trump's 62,979,636 million votes or 46 percent — according to an analysis by The Associated Press.

Clinton is the fifth presidential candidate in American history to win the popular vote and lose the Electoral College. Democrat Al Gore, the only other presidential candidate this century to come up short in the Electoral College but claim a popular vote victory, received 540,000 more votes than President George W. Bush.

The vote total discrepancy between Democratic nominee Clinton and Trump has fueled arguments by some Democrats that the election process is undemocratic and an intense lobbying push to convince electors to cast their votes against Trump.

The effort failed: The Republican president-elect won all but two of the Electoral College votes he claimed on Election Day when electors met in state capitals on Monday.

With all states voting, Trump finished with 304 votes and Clinton had 227.

To be elected president, the winner must get at least half plus one — or 270 electoral votes. Most states give all their electoral votes to whichever candidate wins that state's popular vote. Maine and Nebraska award them by congressional district.

A joint session of Congress is scheduled for Jan. 6 to certify the results of the Electoral College vote, with Vice President Joe Biden presiding as president of the Senate. Once the result is certified, the winner will be sworn in on Jan. 20.

AP's popular vote count does not include finalized results for third-party candidates and write-in votes.